BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2251
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 2251 (Feuer and Blumenfield)
As Amended June 18, 2012
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |77-0 |(April 16, |SENATE: |33-0 |(June 25, |
| | |2012) | | |2012) |
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Original Committee Reference: PUB. S.
SUMMARY : Authorizes prosecutors to send victim contact
information to the California Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation (CDCR) without the victim's consent for purposes
of recouping restitution.
The Senate amendments :
1)Prohibit the district attorney from sending the victim's
contact information to the CDCR when the victim affirmatively
objects.
2)Provides that the district attorney is not required to inform
the victim of the right to object.
EXISTING LAW :
1)States it is the unequivocal intention of the people of the
State of California that all persons who suffer losses as a
result of criminal activity shall have the right to
restitution from the persons convicted of the crimes for
losses they suffer. Restitution shall be ordered from the
convicted persons in every case, regardless of the sentence or
disposition imposed, in which a crime victim suffers a loss,
unless compelling and extraordinary reasons exist to the
contrary.
2)Requires full victim restitution for economic losses
determined by the court.
3)Requires that all monetary payments, monies, and property
collected from any person who has been ordered to make
restitution first be applied to pay the amounts ordered as
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victim restitution.
4)Authorizes CDCR to collect restitution fines and restitution
orders from prisoners.
5)Directs the Secretary of CDCR to deduct a minimum of 20% or
the balance owing on the restitution-fine amount, whichever is
less, and up to a maximum of 50% from the wages and trust
account deposits of a prisoner, and to transfer that amount to
the California Victims Compensation and Government Claims
Board (CVCGCB) for deposit in the restitution fund.
6)States that when a prisoner owes victim restitution, the
Secretary of CDCR shall deduct a minimum of 20% or the balance
owing on the ordered amount, whichever is less, and up to a
maximum of 50% from the wages and trust account deposits of a
prisoner. The secretary shall transfer that amount to the
CVCGCB for direct payment to the victim, or payment shall be
made to the restitution fund to the extent that the victim has
received assistance pursuant to that program.
7)Directs CDCR to collect the restitution order first when a
prisoner owes both a restitution fine and a restitution order.
8)Allows CDCR to withhold an administrative fee from the
offender's earnings to be held in a special deposit account
for the purposes of reimbursing administrative and support
costs of the restitution program.
9)Allows the probation department to send CDCR the victim's
contact information and a copy of the restitution order for
purposes of distributing restitution collected on behalf of
the victim, but only if the victim consents.
10)States that in any case in which a victim cannot be located,
the restitution revenues received by the CVCGCB on the
victim's behalf shall be held in trust in the restitution fund
until the end of the state fiscal year subsequent to the state
fiscal year in which the funds were deposited or until the
time that the victim has provided current address information,
whichever occurs sooner. Amounts remaining in trust at the
end of the specified period of time shall revert to the
restitution fund.
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11)States that any victim failing to provide a current address
within the period of time specified in existing law may
provide documentation to the CDCR, which in turn shall verify
that moneys were in fact collected on behalf of the victim.
Upon receipt of that verified information from the CDCR, the
CVCGCB shall transmit the restitution revenues to the victim
in accordance with the provisions of law.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill authorized prosecutors to
send victim contact information to the CDCR without the victim's
consent for purposes of recouping restitution. Specifically,
the bill:
1)Allowed the district attorney of the county from which the
defendant is committed to send CDCR the victim's contact
information and a copy of the restitution order for the sole
purpose of distributing the restitution collected on the
victim's behalf if the district attorney finds it is in the
best interest of the victim to send that information.
2)Permitted this information to be sent without the victim's
consent.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "AB 2251 amends Penal Code
Section 1203c to allow prosecutors to send victim contact
information to California Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation, so long as it is to ensure victim collection of
restitution, is in the best interest of the victim, and will
remain confidential. Prosecutors are only allowed to release
this information without the consent of the victim under the
conditions that the victim is owed restitution and that their
information is kept confidential by CDCR. Because this
information is only to be released to the CDCR for the purpose
of disbursing court ordered restitution, the bill ensures the
rights and privacy of victims while upholding justice as ruled
by the court and protected by the California constitution.
"This bill will ensure that victims of crime receive their
court-ordered restitution. The bill will streamline CDCR's
efforts to uphold victims' constitutional right to receive
restitution directly from the persons convicted of the crimes
that caused them to suffer losses as a result of convicted
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persons' criminal activity. By making a simple amendment to the
Penal Code, AB 2251 is a clear step toward realizing that right
for all victims of crime in California."
Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion
of this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Sandy Uribe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0004122